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George Kremer

Date

1823-1829

Dimensions

8 3/8 x 7 1/8 in. (21.3 x 18.1 cm)

Accession Number

2012.052.001

Credit Line

Collection of the U.S. House of Representatives

Object Details

This hand-colored engraving shows country shopkeeper and Pennsylvania Representative George Kremer relaxing in a chair and reading a journal with the headline “Reform.” The artist portrays him as “the people’s man,” possibly with a touch of sarcasm, for Kremer was known as a backbench bumpkin. He was best known in his day for wearing a leopard-skin coat on the floor of the House. Today, he is remembered as the author of a fiery anonymous screed against Speaker Henry Clay, intimating that he would sell his support in the 1824 Presdential election to the highest bidder.